Car Sketching

Here in California, it’s rare to have a day when it’s not possible to sketch outdoors. Last week, we had a couple of those days, so to keep out of the rain, I tried some car sketching. Here is Lincoln Liquor in Willow Glen. Sketched on Saturday morning on a grey day. I had to run the windshield wipers every few minutes to see what I was sketching.
I’m enjoying switching up what I usually do when I sketch. This piece is sketched very loosely in pencil, and then worked in watercolors for the most part, with very little line added just at the end. It creates quite a different effect form when I work in line first: More atmospheric, but definitely a slower process.

This is the Garden Theater, also in Willow Glen, named for when San Jose used to be  “The Garden City”. Built in 1949, it now houses offices and retail spaces, and only the neon sign on the facade remains.

Note to self: If you’re car sketching again, remember, TURN OFF YOUR HEADLIGHTS when you park your car and settle down to  sketch.  I didn’t, which meant I needed a jump-start to get my car running again. The upside? After a really grey morning,the sun broke out of the clouds for just a bit, so while I waited for a jump on my car, I got in one more super-quick sunny-sky sketch  in.

Adding these to my growing collection of vintage sign sketches here on Flickr.